Labour confusion as Harman line on cuts puts Balls in a spin

Ed Balls has been forced to clarify his economic plans after Harriet Harman suggested that an incoming Labour government would water down George Osborne’s pace of cuts.

Ms Harman, the Labour deputy leader, said that the party would “not be signing up” to the Chancellor’s deficit reduction plans. But aides to Mr Balls, who is anxious to give himself maximum room for manoeuvre before the next election, said that no such decisions had been taken.

The confusion, before Labour’s party conference, highlights the delicate balancing act Ed Miliband faces next week in trying to flesh out his thinking so far from the election while the state of the economy in 2015 remains unknown.